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I tried googling it, the only credible link I found is this: https://med.stanford.edu/news/all-news/2013/12/in-men-high-testosterone-can-mean-weakened-immune-response-study-finds.html


Can someone please tell me whether this is true. If yes, why?

Butterfly and Bones
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ABcDexter
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1 Answers1

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According to this 2016 Nature Review article (which cites the article from your link):

Androgens have been show to reduce immune response in a variety of studies. For example:

  • In vivo exposure to testosterone reduces NK cell activity in mice [1]
  • In vivo and in vitro exposure to testosterone decreases TLR4 expression on macrophages in mice [2]
  • Testosterone reduces synthesis of TNF, iNOS and NO by macrophages and increases anti-inflammatory response through TGF-b and Il-10 [3]

The mechanism of action of androgenic immunosuppression seems to be due to androgen receptor's inhibitory effect on pro-inflammatory transcription factors [4].

Sources:

  1. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/3366506
  2. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/18003947
  3. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/10415638
  4. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/10453354
D.Tan
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